Oil Bowl
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The Oil Bowl was a college football bowl game played three times at Rice Field in Houston, Texas in the 1940s.[1] Muddy conditions for the first and freezing temperatures for the third game doomed future contests. In 1949, a junior college bowl game of the same name was played.
Some consider the New Year's Day bowl game of 1944 (after the 1943 season) to have been a college division/minor bowl game. Both rosters were made up of varsity players from ranked teams in the 1942 season. This was possible because both schools were participants in the WWII V-12 program. The Southwestern Louisiana Institute (now University of Louisiana-Lafayette) team, for example, was composed of over 175 varsity players from other colleges. These numbers included 18 players from 19th-ranked Rice, nine players from 13th-ranked LSU, and eight players from the eighth-ranked Tulsa teams of 1942. These players were not all starters for the team; varsity players from other schools made up the majority of the team.
Game results
| Date | Winning Team | Losing Team | Location | Notes | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January 1, 1944 | Louisiana-Lafayette | 24 | Arkansas–Monticello | 7 | Rice Field, Houston, Texas | |
| January 1, 1946 | Georgia | 20 | Tulsa | 6 | Rice Field, Houston, Texas | notes |
| January 1, 1947 | Georgia Tech | 41 | Saint Mary's | 19 | Rice Field, Houston, Texas | notes |
Game Summaries
1946 Oil Bowl
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bulldogs | 7 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 20 |
| Golden Hurricane | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
A three yard touchdown rush was the opening score in the first ever Oil Bowl, held in Houston on January 1, 1946. Georgia took a 7-0 lead after this touchdown rush and the first quarter ended as such. Tulsa countered with a touchdown rush of their own, though it was only from one yard out. The PAT failed, making the score 7-6 Georgia at halftime. No scoring happened in the third quarter, and Georgia lengthened their lead in the fourth, scoring twice: a 54-yard pass and a 69-yard punt return. The PAT on the punt return was no good, and the game finished 20-6. Georgia finished with 288 total yards, and Tulsa finished with only 148. [2]
1947 Oil Bowl
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| #11 Yellow Jackets | 7 | 20 | 7 | 7 | 41 |
| Gaels | 0 | 7 | 6 | 6 | 19 |
The second and last Oil Bowl saw #11 Georgia Tech take on St. Mary's in front of 23,000 spectators in Houston. The Yellow Jackets scored the first touchdown of the game in the first quarter and held a 7-0 lead. The second quarter saw Georgia Tech turn the offense on, outscoring St. Mary's 20-7 and taking a 27-7 lead into halftime. The third and fourth quarters were identical in score, with Georgia Tech outscoring St. Mary's 7-6 in both, making the second half score 14-12. The Yellow Jackets became the 1947 Oil Bowl champions, defeating St. Mary's 41-19.
References
- ^ Foldesy, Jody. "Bowls burgeon as big business", The Washington Times. December 21, 1997. Page A1.
- ^ http://grfx.cstv.com/photos/schools/geo/sports/m-footbl/auto_pdf/2015-16/misc_non_event/15fb-history-bowl-recaps.pdf
See also
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